Category Archives: audio

Ear 1 Coming From Nothing

May 13, 2021audio, headphonesaudio, earphones, NothingAndrew

Ex-OnePlus founder Carl Pei’s latest venture, Nothing, has revealed that there’s not long to go before their first product, Ear 1, arrives in June. Described as true wireless earbuds, the final design hasn’t yet been revealed other than through a teaser poster and clues from Carl, “Ear 1 combines notes of transparency, iconic form, and refined functionality. It is the starting point that will define the artistry, confidence and craftsmanship that will carry our products and services for years to come.” Looks a bit like something out of Monument Valley (the game, not the location), if you ask me.

In his blog post, Carl muses on the journey so far and the direction of travel and there are definite echoes of OnePlus, “But more than that, we believe the earphones market was begging for differentiation, a space where we can elevate design and deliver value from day one. ” Where have we heard that before?

The Ear 1 has been designed in partnership with Stockholm-based teenage engineering who have been designing and developing highly acclaimed audio equipment for over ten years.

Intend as the first of many products, Ear 1 is only the beginning, the first step in a long and exciting journey ahead, and Carl jokes about the next model being the Ear 2. I’ve been a fan of OnePlus for years and I’m hoping to see similar success with Nothing. No doubt the Ear 1 will be well designed, sound great and come with a competitive price tag.

Not long to go to find out.

Wireless Charging

April 16, 2017Accessory, audio, automotive, charging, wirelessaccessory, automobile, Automotive, car, carging, charger, Phone, wirelesstomwiles

I‘ve always been a bit on the fence when it comes to wireless charging. The wireless charger itself still needs to be plugged in with a wire.

Back in October I ended up buying a Samsung wireless charger when I upgraded phones. I ended up using it a bit, but generally found that it was more desirable to physically plug my phone in at home in order to take advantage of the super fast wired Samsung charging. The wireless charging process was not as fast and therefore not as convenient when needing to give the phone a quick 10 or 15 minute juice-up.

So, the wireless charger mostly sat unused.

Recently I bought a new car, a 2017 Toyota Yaris iA. The new car has a space in front of the gear shift in the mid center stack perfect for a large phone that includes USB and a 12-volt power socket. I found myself wondering if I plugged the Samsung wireless charger into a 2.1 amp-12 volt power source, would the wireless charger work properly or not.

I experimented and found that the wireless charger works perfectly well with a 2.1 amp 12-volt power source. The next steps were easy. I used a quantity of the rubber grip mat stuff to make the forward slanted phone area flat, and plugged in the Samsung wireless charger. Since the 12-volt socket only has power when the car’s ignition is turned on, I can simply leave the 12-volt charger plugged in all the time just as if it were in my house connected to an AC power source without fear of it running down the car’s battery.

When I get in the car, I simply lay the phone on the Samsung wireless charger and as soon as the ignition comes on while I’m driving the phone is charging without me having to futz around with plugging wires in. Also, the phone connects to the car’s audio system via stereo Bluetooth, making for a 100% seamless experience.

My conclusion is that wireless charging is most useful in an automotive environment, provided that there’s a flat, convenient area for the wireless charger to rest and the power socket is tied to the car’s ignition.

HD Portable Recording with Go Mic Mobile at CES

January 5, 2017audio, ces, hifiaudio, ces, CES 2017, hi-fi, recording, smartphone, soundAndrew

Smartphone cameras have developed incredibly over the past few years and broadcast quality video can be obtained from even mid-range phones. Audio can still let the side down as the built-in microphones simply can’t hear clearly from six feet away. To solve this problem, Samson Technologies have developed the Go Mic Mobile, a professional wireless microphone for mobile filmmakers, journalists, podcasters and vloggers.

Announced today at CES, the Go Mic Mobile will be available in with three different microphone configurations – dynamic handheld, lavalier and shotgun. The compact unit wirelessly mixes HD digital audio on two channels from up to 30 m away and connected via cable to both iOS and Android devices, the Go Mic can operate for up to six hours on battery power. For convenience, the receiver can be mounted on the back of a smartphone using the supplied bracket or fitted to the shoe mount on a DSLR.

“Our goal is to provide passionate creators with a wireless system that delivers superior, clean audio while on-the-go,” says Sean Meagher, Samson’s Director of Marketing. “The Samson Go Mic Mobile continues the evolution of our highly portable microphones as creative consumers like filmmakers and journalists increasingly demand more mobile options.”

For the techies, the Go Mic Mobile uses uncompressed, low latency audio and can operate up to 30 m on the 2.4 GHz frequency band. Frequency response is 10 Hz–22 kHz with a bitrate of 48 kHz which is better (in theory) than CD quality sound. The receiver also includes a switchable 1/8” headphone/mic output with volume control for monitoring or connecting to an analogue input.

The Go Mic Mobile is expected to go on-sale in May 2017 for US$199.

Samson are at CES 2017, Booth #21427 in the South Hall.

OnePlus Teasing USB C Headphones?

August 24, 2016audio, headphonesaudio, earbuds, headphones, hifi, OnePlusAndrew

OnePlus are up to their usual tricks of teasing new product announcements but in this case it doesn’t look like there will be long to wait. In tweet linking to a YouTube video, OnePlus says, “We’re preparing something special. Discover what’s next for #OnePlus on August 25.”

The video shows a vinyl record overprinted with what appears to be an earbud and cable, and a large “V2”. As there’s been much discussion lately about the loss of headphone sockets and their replacement by USB C, the speculation is that OnePlus are going to announce a USB C set of headphones. Judge for yourself.

https://youtu.be/OkUeZ7_YsAI

The company has long offered a competitive range of headphones, including the higher end Icons. My money would be on a new version of those, though I’m less confident about the USB C connector. Whatever it is, there’s not long to wait…

Audio Technica Headphones and Turntables at 2016 CES

March 8, 2016audio, ces, InterviewAudio-Technica, headphones, high, professional, resolution, turntabletomwiles

Todd Cochrane talks with Crystal Griffith, Marketing Manger at Audio Technica. Crystal discusses the Audio Technica ATH MSR7 over-ear headphones. They sell for $249.95.

Crystal also shows the ATH MSR5 in two different versions, the corded version selling for $149.95 and a Bluetooth version selling for $199.95.

They also talk about Audio Technica’s new Bluetooth turntable that sells for $179.95.

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Crosley Turntables at 2016 CES

February 21, 2016audio, retroalbum, audio, Crosley, record, retro, turntable, Vinyltomwiles

Scott Ertz interviews Jason Menard, marketing manager at Crosley.

Turntables are making a bit of a comeback along with vinyl record albums.

They discuss Crosley’s latest line of turntables. Previously Crosley was known for its suitcase style of turntables. In response to customer requests, Crosley is now moving into more sophisticated direct drive turntables.

The “C” series currently has 4 turntables in the line. Prices range from $179 to $350 online.

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Altec Lansing Headphones at 2016 CES

February 21, 2016audio, camera, headphones1080p, Altec Lansing, bluetooth, camera, earbuds, headphones, integrated camera, point of view cameratomwiles

Scott Ertz interviews Jill Byeff, marketing for Altec Lansing. They discuss Altec Lansing’s latest innovative line of headphones and earbuds.

They discuss the new DVR DJ style headphone. The headphone has a built-in 1080p 30 frames per second video camera that has 8 gigabytes of memory built-in as well as an SD card slot to increase video recording capacity. There is also an app that allows the headphones to stream video back to a smartphone or tablet. The DVR headphones will sell for $199 and be available in Q2.

They also talk about the Freedom True Wireless Bluetooth earbuds. These earbuds are waterproof, have a 100 foot Bluetooth range, and even have built-in GPS so you can use a “find my earbuds” feature in an app in case you misplace them. Their earbuds are priced from $29.00 to $99.00 depending on features.

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